Point Of View
by Allybally
Summary: A collection of oneshots about Cody and Squib's relationship through their eyes
1. Studentia Jockulus

_This story is simply a collection of one-shots. Each chapter will be an episode through either Cody or Squib's eyes, starting from the very beginning. This chapter will be very similar to my latest fic 'At Eighth Sight' because they are both in Cody's POV._

_Studentia Jockulus:_

If she had been paying attention she probably would have thought he was cute. Instead she's too preoccupied staring at the giant wall in front of her that she's supposed to climb. She knows she has to get over the wall, and before he does, in order to win this for the girls. In order to make friends. She can't do it, though, and just before that blond guy makes it over the top he casts her a little smirk. Jerk.

On the other side of the wall she confesses, or rather, is found out. She's not a tennis player. The rest of the students cast her disgusted looks and walk away. She's humiliated and alone in a new school. Just before they leave she can hear the blond guy call back, 'Enjoy your crappy dorm, ladies!' and for a little while she thinks she hates him. She realizes later that it's not his fault, but she needs someone to blame for this whole mess and she doesn't want to blame herself. She thinks for just a moment that she sees him look back at her, but her head is down and she can't really tell.

When she hears him fighting with Sebastien, the only student who has been nice to her, she decides that it's people like him who are going to make this school hell for her. She wants nothing to do with him.

She's sitting with Megan and Adena talking about her pictures. When they see one of Squib she is about to bring up her thoughts about him when she thinks better of it. These two girls seem not to mind him, even if he's a little annoying, and trashing their friends will not make her very popular here. Instead she comments on his cute butt. It isn't a lie. By now she _has_ noticed him, but is already so turned off by his personality that it doesn't really matter.

Sebastien wins against him and she's happy about it until she sees the two boys shaking hands. What happened to the jerk? She sighs as she runs to find Rick and retract her article, feelings of guilt weighing down on her.

It's going to be a long year…


	2. The Princess And The Clown

_The Princess And The Clown:_

Squib's just lost against that stupid little gnome Sunny Capaduca and he swears he can see Myers smiling in the stands. What does that girl have against him anyways? She can't possibly know him, they've never even talked! She's just a stuck up faculty brat. A rather cute stuck up faculty brat, he admits only to himself, but still. She doesn't even play tennis.

So he's a little surprised when he finds himself walking down the hall with her. It hadn't been arranged or anything, they just happened to come out of class at the same time, and he needed someone to rant to about Sunny. She laughs at his impression of her and he wonders what happened to the girl that hated him. She surely can't have disappeared after one Sunny impersonation. He forgets about it, though, when he hears that announcement about Sunny on the intercom. Stupid little gnome…

After talking with Sebastien, he finds himself at the Myers' house ringing the doorbell repeatedly. He's nervous, which is unusual, but he convinces himself it's probably just because he's afraid she'll yell at him or something. Despite their earlier moment together, that girl gives off a vibe. A 'get away from me, jerk!' kind of vibe. She opens the door, though, and is completely calm. She even cracks a joke.

Sitting on the couch with her, he realizes how talented she really is. He's heard Meghan and Adena rave about her, but he's never actually checked it out for himself. He insists they're really good when she says they're just okay because they are. He glances at her just long enough to see her blush. It's cute.

They're sitting in Bates' office together, getting lectured, and he finds himself standing up for her. After all, it wasn't her fault; she didn't even know why he wanted the picture. She quickly insists it was her fault, too, and he is reminded of her feelings for him. She does, however, cast him a grateful look and he thinks she may have warmed up just a little.

When he finds out about Bates holding the photos over Sunny's head, he has no choice but to go see Cody again. This time she does comment on his ringing the doorbell about a million times, but it's more teasing than anything else. She quickly agrees to help him. As the two of them, joined by Seb and Adena, sit in his dorm room, he fails to notice until that night when he's looking back on it all how quick she was to put her hand up. He wonders why; she isn't even a player. But she does and the four of them set out on their mission.

Squib and Cody are in an office, trying to find the right key. But there are so many and her rambling to herself is getting pretty annoying, so he just grabs the entire board. When he makes a comment about the keys compared to girls, she tells him to shut up and open the door. He gets a glimpse of that 'get away from me, jerk!' vibe. He opens it, sends her in, gives her a quick warning when the guard comes, and is on his way.

When she meets up with him and Adena afterwards he realizes maybe she's a bit tougher than he thought. He doesn't have much time to think about it, though, because the next day he's getting his butt kicked by Sunny again. He sees her smiling in the stands, but this time he doesn't really mind.


	3. The French Deception

_I know I haven't included thoughts before, but they're in this chapter. So, just so no one gets confused, from here on thoughts are in italic._

_The French Deception_

An illegal chocolate bar trade? What a dork. That has got to be the stupidest thing Cody Myers has ever heard. Ever. So what if there's a stupid sugar ban? He sells chocolate bars illegally, that's his solution? She doesn't care if maybe she doesn't hate Squib anymore, or at least not as much, he's still a freaking idiot.

This opinion is only reassured when he shows up on the bleachers, a whole pack of younger students behind him.

"You have got to be kidding me," she says. Even if he _is_ Squib, this is a little extreme.

"Tennis is hard work. I guy like me needs a posse," he answers her, reaching into his pocket.

"Oh, and this wouldn't have anything to do with illegal chocolate bars…" _That's right, buddy, I'm onto you._

He laughs and says, "Not even close," but as he does it he's slipping chocolate bars into one of his _posse_'s hand! Does he think she was born yesterday?

"The way I see it," he continues, "I provide a service," _Yeah, and illegal one, nimrod!_ "This sugar ban is a violation of our rights!" _Morons don't get rights._ "We should be able to choose."

"And…you should be able to get rich."

"It's win/win," he smiles and it would be cute were he not overloading her brain with his idiotic logic.

"Mmm hmm…But, doesn't it get in the way of your tennis?"

"I'm doing fine. Fact is, I just beat Sebastien," _Oh, yeah right! How'd you manage that?_ If she didn't know any better, she would say he was trying to impress her. She stares at him for a moment and he finally confesses. "By default, but it still counts!" _Okay, you keep telling yourself that, Squibey._

"So, where's Sebastien?"

"Haven't seen him in a while. He's a strange one that boy…" You're _calling_ him _strange? _He clears his throat almost nervously and pulls out a chocolate bar. "Want a piece? First one's free." He waggles his eyebrows at her. _You. Are. Such. A. Moron!_ Cody says nothing and walks away; she doesn't have time for people like _him_, not when she supposed to be helping her _normal_ friends like Sebastien.

* * *

Seb looks really good when he walks into the dance, and Cody's proud. Not only because she helped, but because he's her friend and he deserves this night. Maybe he and Meghan will finally get together. She turns around, that weird feeling that someone's watching her has struck again, but there's only Squib and he seems very preoccupied with pouring himself some punch. She's gotten that feeling a couple of times tonight…

She sits with Squib at a table for a few minutes, making small talk. She's decided not to be too hard on him; he seems a little down about his chocolate trade getting busted. Sure, he deserved it and he's still an idiot, but still. Soon, though, she tugs on his sleeve and tells him she's going to talk to Adena. He seems a little down, but she's sure he's just brooding over his chocolate. She quickly walks away, desperate to find someone else to talk to. The longer she sat with Squib, the more she felt those butterflies fluttering around in her stomach. And we can't have that, now, can we?

Talking to Adena, she can feel a small smile threatening to grace her lips as she thinks back over the last couple days.

And illegal chocolate bar trade? What a dork.


	4. Midnight Snack Club

_Midnight Snack Club_

They're sneaking out? Could be cool, Squib thinks. It's been a while since he's gotten into any trouble. Okay, that's a lie. But still, could be cool. Although Sebastien's been acting really weird around him since he paid a visit to Cody. He'll have to remember to ask him what that's all about.

Apparently she's coming, too. Cody, that is. Which is good, especially since Squib couldn't figure out how to ask her himself. It's not like he _wants_ her there or anything. It's just, well, they're all sort of friends now and…yeah. Because the two of them? Still not exactly the best of friends. He still gets that 'jerk' vibe from her and frankly, there are times when he finds her a little stuck up. But still, she cute. There's just something about redheads…

Crap! The door is locked! How could no one have remembered to grab a key or wedge it or _something_? But suddenly Cody's handing Sebastien a key. Not only tougher than he though, but slightly cooler, too. They're back on track! Not for long, though. Sebastien's locked the key in the door. Great. Just great.

This…has gotten…boring. After their futile attempt to get him up to the window (he's spent the rest of the night trying _not_ to think about where Cody's hand went while pushing him up) and a small talk about cannibalism, there's nothing left but truth or dare. There was also that kiss with Meghan, but…that was more gross than anything else. It's not like he hates Meghan, far from it, but the girl is like a sister to him. That and he's had trouble looking Cody in the eye ever since…

But now things are getting interesting. Especially when Seb dares him to strip down to his boxers and do pushups. He's only thankful the gym was relatively dark and he was facing the floor; it helped hide his blush when Cody started cheering. Then it's Seb's turn, so he instructs his friend to lick an allotted space on the floor. Eww. But he can hear Cody giggling madly beside him and _that_, he decides, is _really_ cute. Now it's Squib's turn again and he's parading around in Adena's bra. Some guys would be embarrassed but he's Gary Furlong. So he simply does it amongst the mad laughs of his friends and when Cody insists he keep the bra on he's not sure whether he should take it as a compliment or an insult.

"Who here's done it?" Adena asks. _Now we're getting somewhere._

"Sure," Squib answers, not really caring. Although he does sneak a glance at Cody to see her reaction, but she's strangely neutral.

"Interesting how it divides along gender lines…" Cody stalls and at that moment Squib knows that she has. There's no way she'd avoid answering if she hadn't. Plus she's looking down and her voice is slightly defensive; that way that she gets when she's being forced into something she'd rather not be doing. "…Yes." Wow. Tougher, cooler, and…well, Squib doesn't quite know what to make of this.

"So she goes!" Sebastien exclaims and Squib has the odd urge to punch him. Cody gets to him first, though, and Squib suppresses a smile.

"Are you attracted to anyone in the room?" Meghan asks. _Here we go…_

"…Squib? Squib!" She gives him a little nudge, and he snaps out of his daze. _What's that Meghan? Sorry, I was staring at the cute redhead._

"Yes." _Okay, now stop staring at her you moron…you look like an idiot…she's staring back! She's staring back! What are you, 12? Down boy, down!_

"Cody?" _Oh, look at that, I missed a whole chunk of the game…_

"Damn straight…" _Eye contact? Very interesting. Very nice eyes, too._

The rest of the night passes in kind of a blur…

* * *

The next day all the Top Guns are sitting by the courts, agreeing that last night never happened. Cody gives him a small, knowing look and walks off. He leaves, too. 'Guitar' practice, after all.

He's sitting underneath a tree, postponing his practicing. He's too exhausted from last night to hit tennis balls. When he looks up she's standing there, kind of staring at him. As soon as he meets her eyes, though, she looks down and keeps walking. _Come on…look up Myers, look up…_And she does, seemingly in slow motion. She gives him a little smile, which he returns, and they maintain eye contact until she has passed him. _Yes,_ Squib thinks, _very pretty eyes_. He smiles and shakes his head. Something about redheads…


	5. Reckoning

_Veeeeeery short, I know! But they only had one scene together!_

_Dedicated to Candy, incase she dies. Or updates, whichever comes first._

_Reckoning:_

They're sitting over there talking about tennis. Again. Cody debates for quite a while whether or not she should go over. What does she have to contribute? Then again, going over there means getting to talk to Squib…

Oh, yes. She's fully, completely, totally, entirely, utterly, and wholly accepted it by now.

But it still takes another five minutes of sitting there working up the courage before she actually _does_ go over.

"Permission for a member of the common folk to speak?" _Gee, Myers, smooth…_ "What does it matter if someone screws up?"

"If one of us slips in the rankings," Meghan informs her, "it could start the downward spiral," _Over dramatic, much? _"The next thing you know- Day job." Squib shutters in repulsion. _Okay, crush or no crush, still a little bit of an idiot._

"And," Adena continues, "it's not easy staying friends with people who don't play."

_Uh, hello! _"Uh, hello!"

"It's different with you. I mean, you weren't at the starting gate," _And damn proud!_

"So make a pact," she suggests, "five years from this day, look each other up."

"City Girl speaks words of wisdom," Squib jokes and she looks down to hide the blush.

"Let's do it," Adena agrees, "five years from this day, we all get together again." _Well, my work here is done. Time to go join the land of the living, or at least the non-tennis obsessed. Wait. Forgot where I was for a minute…_Cody begins to walk away as they all put their hands in.

"Hey City Girl, get you're butt in here!" A familiar blond calls. She turns back a little stunned and after they make their pact she is smiling for more reasons than one.

City Girl. She likes that.


	6. Memphre Blues

_Memphre Blues:_

She's up there snapping her camera again. Every single click as the shudder goes down is magnified a thousand times in his mind. How's he supposed to concentrate?

Oh. Yay. Now Rick's here, reminding them about class. This does nothing to lighten Squib's already bad mood.

"Hey Cody!" He calls once he notices her, "How's it going? Looking good!" _Stop hitting on her, you twisted little gnat!_

"Crawl off and die somewhere, Rick," she tells him. _Nice one, Myers! _It succeeds in getting rid of Rick.

"This is getting boring, dude," he tells Sebastien, tired of hitting.

"Oh, is it, _dude_?" She calls. Now she's mocking him, too? He's already exhausted and her constant presence is not making matters and better.

"Why don't you mind your own business, Sweet heart?" He says rudely.

He mocks her threat to hurt him with one of her lenses and Meghan has to calm them down. _Really shouldn't get in my way today, Myers_ he warns her internally _not in a good mood already, your usual taunting won't help._

"Next time you hit the ball," Sebastien suggests, "shout something you want when you're a world famous pro."

"My own tabloid scandal!" Squib shouts when he hits the ball. _Mwa ha ha._

"Hey Squib," Adena saddles up to him, "can I be part of your tabloid scandal?" _Oh, yes, the ladies love Squib!_

"Only if I can be your celebrity boyfriend…"_ rather smooth, if I do say so myself._ He hears Cody's noises of disgust and snaps. _That's it, Myers! I warned you! No more mocking! If you think I'm such a jerk anyways why can't you just leave me alone! Cute or not, prepare for the wrath of Squib._

"Wait a minute, one of us hasn't gone yet…"

"What?" Asks Cody, "You think just because I don't play tennis I'm not gonna be rich and famous?" _That's right, baby, take the bait._

"Of course not. But we _will_ need someone to take our pictures. We'll pay well."

"You're unbelievable," it's the first time he's seen Cody look actually hurt since her first day here when they all ditched her. _Okay, maybe that was a little much, Squibey. But come on! Learn to take a joke!_

"Squib, why are you always so mean to her?" Meghan asks.

"What? What'd I say?"

* * *

The idea came to him as he was flipping through an old magazine and he must admit it's pretty ingenious. He gets to fish; Cody gets to take pictures of…well, nothing. But he gets to fish. Besides, she deserves it. She started it this morning.

"Give me a break, Squib," she says when she learns of his plans to go monster hunting, "are you trying to ease your guilty conscience?" _What? No! No. Definitely not. I was just, I mean, fishing, and…No._

"I'm telling you, all you need to do is find a rock or a piece of driftwood or something and you could be famous," _come on… come on… you know you want to!_ She starts to walk away. "Where are you going?"

"Where do you think? To get my camera!" _VICTORY!_

* * *

_Alone time with Cody? He's crazy. Insane._

_Then why does his comment keep bugging you._

_Sebastien's comment is not bugging me! It's just so stupid! That's all._

_Oh really? So, if say, Adena had a fishing boat, you con her into taking it out with you?_

_Well, no, but that's Adena! This is…_

_Cody?_

_Shut up._

Squib's internal battle is interrupted when he sees Cody walk by. Jumping out and scarring her, he follows her down to the boat despite her complaints. _'Just don't be annoying'? Gee, you're nice! I've gotten over this morning, why can't you?_ Squib always knew she was a little stuck up…

He seriously considers taunting her about not being able to start the boat, but decides she's had enough for one day. He settles with offering her some helpful suggestions, which she promptly rejects in snappy tones. He glares at her when she does manage to start it, but her proud smile is kind of cute, so he has to look away.

* * *

Okay, so, he knows it was mean. And he knows she doesn't really deserve it. But the look on her face when she found out he came out here to fish was priceless. Squib makes sure to store it in his long term memory for_ever_. She glares at him and he knows her 'jerk' vibe will probably resonate a thousand times stronger now. He starts to feel tiny pangs of guilt creeping up, but as if he's telling her that.

"You're wasting my batteries," she warns him as he plays with her cell phone. _Well, at least she's speaking to me again._ He ignores her until she reminds him about bed check and he begrudgingly gets ready to pack up. He goes to start the boat, but nothing happens. _Oh crap._ He tries again, still nothing. Once more, but the boat still won't start.

"Let me do it, reject," she snaps. _Well, if there was any doubt that she still thought you were a jerk she's certainly cleared that up. Damn._ The smaller girl tries three times but has no more luck than he did.

"What did you do to it? You broke it!" She accuses. _Oh, so suddenly this is my fault?_

"No way! You broke it back at the dock! I told you, you were starting it wrong!"

"My dad's gonna kill me!" He starts to feel bad for her until she continues, "This is all your fault!"

"How exactly is this my fault? I didn't force you to come out here! You can't blame everything on me, Sweet heart!" The minute the name leaves his mouth he knows he's going to get yelled at but by this point, he doesn't really care.

"Hey! I told you not to ever call me that! That is so condescending!" She shouts back and at the defensive and slightly hurt look in her eyes Squib decides maybe he does care (but just a _little_!) and backs off.

"Okay, okay, it doesn't matter whose fault it is. The thing's obviously busted," _Way to state the obvious, Furlong!_

She sighs, "So. What do we do?"

"We'll paddle to the nearest shore!" _Squib saves the day once again!_

"Shore? What shore?"

"…Uh oh."

"I can't believe you got us lost…I thought you said you were a…a seasoned outdoorsman?"

"I am," he says, willing to try anything to improve the situation, "in fact, I brought…matches!" Squib looks triumphant for about a second before losing his grip and dropping them into the lake.

"This is not happening to me…"

"Relax," says Squib as an idea strikes him, "I'll call my cell! I left it with Sebastien!" _Squib saves the day!...For real!_ Unfortunately there's no answer, but Squib leaves specific instructions for Seb on his voice mail, determined to get him and Cody out of this. Suddenly, though, the phone call is forgotten when something starts pulling on his line. Cody's beside him, sounding worried, but he pays no mind. After all, it's just a fish. She should know by now that there's no such thing as a Memphre. The fish gets away, as does Cody's cell phone when it slips from his hands.

"My cell phone! You idiot!" Squib resigns himself right then and there to the disheartening fact that he is never going to be more than a dumb jerk to Cody.

"…Must have been a sturgeon," is all he can think of to say. _Smooooooooth, Furlong._

"Okay, now, what are we going to do?" Cody demands. From the sound of her voice Squib can tell she's reaching the end of her line. He tries to reassure her that Sebastien will check the messages and suggests she gets some sleep.

"As if," she replies, "it's freezing out here." And before Squib can even process what he's doing, he slips off his jacket and offers it to her. She looks almost as shocked at his actions as Squib feels, but eventually she just thanks him and slips on the jacket.

* * *

She's been asleep for a little while now and Squib's so distracted by her that he decides to just put down the paddle and sit; it's useless anyways. She's really very pretty, he muses. And not just cute, like Meghan, or hot, like Adena, but pretty. And he supposes she's not that bad. No, scratch that, he _knows_ she's not that bad; nice, really. If only they could stop fighting all the time. If only they could ease the tension. If only he could make her not hate him. Because, despite what he may say, and despite how he may act, he _knows_ he doesn't hate her.

She's stirring in her sleep now, so he quickly looks away. He's not quick enough, though, and she catches him staring.

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing," he denies. Then a thought occurs to him: Why not be honest? What has he got to lose? She already hates him. "I mean…It's just your face…in the moonlight…" _cheesy, Furlong. Very cheesy. But true._

"What? Am I drooling?" He has to smile at her innocence.

"No," he says softly, "actually, you look…."

"What?"

_Now or never, Squibey_, "Beautiful."

"Shut up," she says as she rolls over. But he can hear the faint chuckle in her voice, and despite the darkness, he can see the blush on her cheeks.

He reaches over, turns off the lantern, and picks up the camera. She asks him what he's doing, but truthfully, he doesn't even know anymore.

"Why'd you take the flash off?" She asks. "There's not enough light. I'm just gonna be like a fuzzy blob."

"There's something that's really magical about this moonlight," he says openly. Raising his amateur eye to the camera, he hears the soft click as he takes her picture. At first she looks like she's going to protest, but she simply lies back down. "Somehow," he continues, "it hides all your flaws." As soon as he says it, he knows that there's something wrong with the way it came out. And this hypothesis is only solidified when she calls him a jerk. He _never_ meant to insult her! Can't she see that's his roundabout was of telling her she looks pretty? Apparently not. But, although he's only known her for a short time, he has learned not to try and fix things when he makes her mad. It generally only gets worse…

* * *

"I'm so hungry!"

"I'm more hungry! Boys get hungrier; our metabolism."

"Oh, shut up," Cody says and he can _hear_ the smile in her voice. If tonight has taught him anything, it's the she can't stay mad for long. At least, not at him, it seems. He takes a coin out of his pocket and flicks it into the water, deciding they need some entertainment.

"What was that?" He exclaims, sitting up.

"Nice try, nimrod," she says and he realizes that maybe he struck out with that one, "I can't believe there's actually people who believe in the Memphre!"

He's a little shocked that she's starting a conversation with him. A seemly innocent, _friendly_ conversation with him. But he doesn't let it show, "Yeah, they, like, have discussion groups about it and stuff."

"It's so sad! Like, what'd that crazy guy in the magazine say?" She's sitting up now and moves closer to him, "_It's a big, scaly beast_."

"_It loves the taste of human flesh!_ _And it only ever comes out…_"

"_On a full moon!_" They both finish, giggling madly by now. Suddenly, there's a splash in the water and the laughing has stopped. She screams, moving to sit beside him and clutching his arm.

"Was that you?" She asks. He's not quite sure if she's serious, but answers anyways.

"Uh, no…They don't make coins that big…"

A few minutes later and they're still sitting perfectly still (although she has, unfortunately, let go of his arm by now). Suddenly, she gasps.

"What the heck was that?" She grabs for his arm again.

'What?"

"Well, I thought I saw something!" He feels bad that she's scared, but there's really nothing he can do. He doesn't have a clue what's going on in that lake. Something rocks the boat and she screams again.

"Squib…do you think it could be…?"

"No way," he insists, "it's just a stupid legend!" But seconds later the boat is rammed again…

* * *

"Well, whatever it was…I think it's gone," Squib finally speaks. They've been sitting silently in the boat for a good five minutes, at least, but nothing else has happened.

"Good…I though I was going to die," she admits.

"Of all the people I'd wanna die with, you'd be way down there on that list…" he doesn't know _why_ he says it. And the laws of probability and logic state that he really should have learned by _now_. But tonight it seems that his brain and his mouth just don't want to work together. He wonders if maybe he should try apologizing when she snaps at him.

"Okay, that's it!" She stands up, moving to the other side of the boat. "Why do you always say things like that to me?"

And suddenly he's mad, because it's not like she's ever been a peach to him, either, "If you think I'm a total jock idiot, then why do you even care what I think of you?"

"…Because." Suddenly it seems she's lost her nerve, but he's not letting her get away that easily. It's time they got this all out in the open, even if it does end with her admitting she hates him, because he _knows_ that it's true.

"Because why?"

"Just because."

"Because why?" _You hate me Myers, just admit it!_

"Just because!"

"No, I wanna know why!"

"Because I can't stop thinking about you, okay?" That was…..not what he expected. He tries to think of something to say, but it seems she's not finished yet. "Your stupid face, your stupid hair, your stupid laugh and…like you care…because I don't play tennis….I'm not some supermodel like Adena. Forget it. So, go ahead, make fun of me. I don't care."

Looking back, even months later, Squib would still be unable to describe what he was feeling at that very moment. Don't play tennis? Who cares? Not like Adena? Even better. Make fun of her? Never. Not for this. Stupid hair? Okay, they'll talk about that one later…He doesn't even know _what_ that feeling is in the pit of his stomach, but he knows that it's _good_. Very good. So he does the only thing he can think of. The only thing that seems right. The one thing he's wanted to do, even if it was subconscious, since he met her.

He kisses her.

* * *

The rest of the night and the following morning was frankly sort of a blur to Squib. He remembers her kissing him, and he remembers drifting to shore with her all tangled up in his arms. And he remembers that sinking feeling that he got when they stepped off the boat and he realized that they'd probably have to talk about this. Luckily, he is spared that conversation for the moment by Rick. He doesn't even mind when Cody kisses him on the cheek, because last night was _that_ good.

Later that day, he decides to go talk to her. After coming to the conclusion that she's not at home, the only other choice is, of course, her darkroom. So he knocks on the door and waits for her reply. Actually, he stands outside for 10 minutes, seriously considers walking away 3 times, and _then_ knocks on her door.

He figures there's no point in trying to hide it anymore. They basically laid it all down last night on the boat. However, before he can get very far, she speaks.

"Look, Squib, um…I'm sure there were things both of us said or did on that boat due to the…emotional intensity of the situation…that we now regret." Again, she surprises him. But this time it's not nearly as nice. He, of course, agrees stupidly. She looks at him as if she expects him to say something else, but what else could she want?

"So, um…bye," he decides to bail out before he makes himself look like more of a fool.

"Bye," she looks hurt. Which make absolutely no sense. She's the one who shot him down. He leaves the darkroom and leans against the wall, breathing deeply.

How could he have been so stupid?


	7. Scourge of the Frankenrival

_Scourge of the Frankenrival:_

So they're just pretending nothing happened now?

Apparently so, because he hasn't spoken to her all day. Which, normally, would be taken as a sign of _something_, but considering he never talked to her much before…

Nothing.

She can see him talking on his phone over by the food. Well, fine then, if that's the way he wants to do it, that's just peachy by her. She can play it cool, too. She wants another bun, anyways.

"Hey, Squib," she says in a tone so casual it makes her proud.

"You seen Sebastien?" He asks. And she can't help but be a little hurt because, come on, she knows they said the kiss meant nothing, but it can't have meant _nothing_. Not even a little awkwardness? Looking a floor? A stutter; one stutter, and she'll be satisfied.

Still Nothing.

"Nope."

"It's so unfair," _unfair? You wanna know about unfair? I kissed you! Show some emotion! Am I honestly that revolting?_ "He gets to take off whenever he wants just because his old man's some millionaire." Cody simply glances away, opting not to lie to him unless push comes to shove. "You know something I don't?" And apparently, it has.

"Define something?" She'd still rather not lie to him, even if he is being a jerk without realizing it. Or maybe, he does! Maybe he's doing this all on purpose just to mess with her mind! She wouldn't put it past him…

"Special _circumstances_, for example?" He cuts off her inner rant of paranoia. Well, she can't tell him, that's for sure. But until she knows if he's being a jerk on purpose or by accident, she can't lie to him, either.

"I haven't heard anything…" technically, it's true. She hasn't heard anything _lately_…

"Come on, first the guy shafts me in class, and now he's disappeared off the face of the earth? You have to tell me what you know. _Please Cody?_" So he picks today of all days to put his well-hidden logic into use _and_ be charming? God must hate her. She has to admit, though, there's a brief, tiny, miniscule moment when he looks at her with his puppy dog eyes and she considers the fact that maybe it _did_ mean something to him. Maybe he's acting, just like her. Maybe she should tell him. Of course, logic and loyalty prevail. Sebastien is one of her best friends, and she will keep his secret.

"I can't," is all she says to him. She turns away, heading back to her table where she knows she'll just spend more time trying to analyze Squib's psyche. And more particularly, that stupid kiss. That stupid kiss that she is starting to regret…oh, who is she kidding? Although if he'd just stop, consciously or otherwise, playing her hot and cold (well, more like just cold at the moment…), her life would be a whole lot easier.

Boys are complicated, she decides. She needs a hobby…

_This one's kinda just okay, but I didn't have a lot to go with. They went from a whole episode together to one stupid scene. Which, may I add, contains no awkwardness or mention of the kiss whatsoever, which I always found both odd and frustrating. So I decided that maybe they were awkward and panicking, just on the inside. Hopefully, it was believable. Read, review, enjoy!_


	8. Mixed Up Doubles

_Dedicated to Candybrowneyez and Novajanna, the only two people who bothered to review my last update._

_Mixed Up Doubles:_

"Blow off the universe again?"

Squib glances up in surprise to see her standing over him. Just what he needs. First this whole doubles tournament fiasco, and now little miss hot-and-cold. Then again, he reminds himself, none of this is really her fault. The tennis, she has nothing to do with. The kiss, well, that was…_emotional intensity_, or whatever crap she fed him.

"How long have you been here?" He turns back to his game nonchalantly.

"Long enough to know something's eating you," _Well, gee; you just think you're _so_ smart, don't you?_

"Leave the shrinking to your old man," she ignores his comment, instead opting to lean over and snatch his phone right out of his hands. He can't really be angry, though, seeing as he's always admired her for her confidence. Instead he just puts on a slight look of annoyance.

"So, you're not entering the mixed?" She asks, even though they both know the answer.

"I'm in a bit of a slump," he makes a weak attempt at brushing it off.

"So?" _You really don't get this tennis thing, so you, Myers?_

"So, who wants a loser for a partner?"

"Oh, cry me a river, Squib," then again, sometimes her confidence can be a little…infuriating. A few seconds later, she's handing him back his game, proclaiming that she 'meant to do that' and looking a little embarrassed. It's cute.

"You think I should play?" Squib, in a rare moment, asks her.

"Well, it's not only you on the court, right?"

"So?" He echoes her earlier words.

"So, I can't imagine a better way to break out of a slump, especially if your partner's good," maybe she gets this tennis thing a little more than he thought.

* * *

Okay, so, at first, it was great. A free ride up the rankings. But this is just getting embarrassing. He's being owned by a twelve-year old. If Sunny would just let him hit the ball a couple times…but _nooooooo_.

"Wow! You were electric!" Cody smirks as he approaches the stands. She always picks the worst times to mock him. "So fast, I couldn't even see you touch the ball!" _Oh yeah, laugh it up, faculty brat_.

"You write that one yourself?" This is all her fault.

"Seriously, congrats," and now she's actually smiling a real smile as she gives his visor a little tap and, were he not so angry, it probably could've kept him blushing all day.

"You think I'm coasting." It's a statement, not a question.

"Well, I didn't say anything…"

"Hey, you're the one that said I should do this. You hinted that I should lean on someone who's better. Like it'd help my slump."

"News flash, Squib," she says in an alarmingly calm manner compared to her teasing tone seconds before, "slump's over." He simply glares and walks away because, damn it, she has a point! He _hates_ when she has a point!

* * *

So, his new strategy is to write signals down on a piece of paper, stick it in his wristband, and do whatever the heck Sunny's cues him to do. Still pathetic. But at least now he's hitting them. It's a good enough plan…

That is, until the paper's ruined. And he's screwed.

"Sunny…I won't be able to remember the signals…" the tiny little twit simply glares and walks away. He sighs, wondering what he should do. Looks like its back to letting Sunny get everything…

But then he takes a glance out into the stands and _she's_ sitting there. She gives him a big smile (real, not sarcastic, for once) and a thumbs up. And suddenly he realizes that he can't just do _nothing_…

So, with the painful and rather stressful knowledge that, for the first time in a while, there's at least one person in those stands who's rooting for him, he does the only logical thing.

He plays.

* * *

They're all sitting in the Open later, playing cards (what else?). He's never actually thanked her for the victory, but he thinks she knows.

Squib smiles, yes, slump's definitely over. Not to mention, he has a killer hand. That is, until Cody slams down her cards.

Damn it!


	9. 30Love

_For Nova-Janna, because she asked so nicely and I made her wait so long. And Candy, too, because they're the only people who review my C/N fics._

_30/Love_

"A moody guy skipping stones? Call the cliché police."

"I'm not skipping stones. I'm drowning them." Oh, yes, he's definitely in a bad mood today. And now she's realizing that maybe he needs a little more time to cool off, but when she heard from Meghan that something was wrong, she just _had_ to go find him. Damn her hormones.

"I thought you'd be down here," she's calm, as usual. She's learned that the way to talk to Squib is to _not_ let his outbursts get a rise out of you, "Megs said you were acting kind of weird."

"Just caught me thinking out loud," he shrugs. At least he hasn't started yelling yet. Because quiet, brooding Squib she can deal with, but yelling, angry Squib makes it much harder for her to keep her cool.

"Hey, wait," she grabs his wrist, "you wanna find one that's flat," she doesn't even know what the hell she's doing now. It's like her hand has a mind of its own, "Try this," she places a rock in his hand and the touch lingers for just a moment. She doesn't know if he feels any better, but she sure does. The rock skips (symbolic? The back of Cody's mind asks) and they both smile.

She figures it's safe to approach the subject now, "Hey, shouldn't you be getting ready for the-,"

"The regionals!" He cuts her off, "I knew I was forgetting something." Maybe not.

"Whoa, easy there, Captain Sarcasm," watching her dad work, both on herself and with other people, has made her an expert at this sort of thing. Stay calm, don't react, and eventually they'll start talking. She knows it's annoying as hell for the person on the other end, but she also knows it works. "Did I touch a nerve or something?" She places her hand on his back. Purely for effect, of course.

"It's just, my parents said I had to qualify for the Canadian Junior Davis Cup, or else."

How foreboding, "Well, it's just another tournament. What's the problem?" She's seen him play, and she knows he's good, so frankly, she really doesn't get it.

"The problem is who I face in tomorrow's qualifier."

"Venus Williams?"

"Max Giroux." Meh, it was worth a shot.

"Oh, yeah, sorry," she's wondering how long it will take him to pick up on the sarcasm and _explain_.

"He was a tennis prodigy, like Sunny, except now he's my age. They call him The Wall."

She's trying her very best to keep a straight face, but it's just so hard. _The Wall_? The ominous look on Squib's face? It's all too much. She will never get these tennis players. But she also knows that it takes a lot to get Squib worked up about a match, so there must be _something_ wrong.

"Whoa, brutal nickname."

"Appropriate nickname, because no matter what you send to him…it comes back," the sad, worried, lost puppy look in Squib's eyes is enough to dispel any laughter.

* * *

"How come no one else is freaking out about this tournament?" They've been sitting on the beach for a while now, and she's been pleased to discover that the silence is companionable. But she still needs to know what's wrong.

"Regionals are optional for them, their _stellar rankings_ get them a buy into the Davis Cup," does she detect a note of bitterness?

"…Well, that sucks," _Gee, Codes, how eloquent. _"Your parents know you're having a rough time?"

When he scoffs, she guesses maybe that was the wrong thing to ask, "Son, you could be just as good as your brother if you'd only apply yourself," he impersonates his father.

So _now_ the truth comes out. Sort of. "What's your brother got to do with this?"

He sighs and says, "Nothing," but when he turns and makes eye contact with her he quickly looks away and admits, "Everything." He stares at the ground for a few minutes more and then returns his gaze to her for just a second before looking out at the lake. "Forget it."

She can tell by the way he says it that he's told her all he wants, maybe even too much (this is Squib, after all), but that doesn't mean she's finished, "So, what happens if you don't win the regionals?"

"They'll send me to a regular school," now she _knows_ there's bitterness in his voice. She knows he's probably exaggerating, he is, after all, a teenage boy under a lot of stress with a strange resentment for his parents, but she still feels a small pang of worry.

"Squib," she says slowly. She knows he's not going to like this, "I think I know someone who might be able to help."

* * *

"Hey, you mind if I watch TV?" She walks into the Open that afternoon. She's been bugging her dad all day to find out what went on with Squib- she's still not sure if it was a good idea to send him there- but he's choosing to be all professional and respect that whole confidentiality thing. Stupid rules.

She can tell by the way that Squib's slumped down that he's in a bad mood, but that's to be expected. And she can tell by the way that Seb's leaning forward that he's trying to make him feel better, but that's also to be expected. He's a good friend. Squib should try treating him like dirt less. When Squib doesn't answer, she simply sits down beside him and takes the remote from his hand.

"Hey," Sebastien continues as if she never interrupted them, "I know you're worried about The Wall," does _everybody_ know about this guy but her? Squib's shaking his head angrily and Cody knows he's about to blow. _Stop,_ she wills Seb with her mind, _For the love of God, save yourself!_ "Francois could teach you a few tricks!" Evidently the message wasn't received.

"Back off, Sebastien," Squib jumps up from the couch suddenly, "I'm warning you."

"Warning me?" Now Seb's standing, too, "Blowing off the regionals? Ignoring the learning opportunity of a lifetime?" His voice is getting louder, and Cody decides that maybe she'd better step in.

"Hey!" Now she's standing as well, although it really doesn't make much of a difference. She's still not even in their line of sight. She never noticed how tall they were…_Bigger fish, Cody!_ "Are you guys okay?" Well, obviously not. But she couldn't really think of anything else…

"It's like I don't even know you anymore," Sebastien spits at him. Okay, now they're just ignoring her.

"Maybe you never did!"

"Did you ever try talking?" Cody tries to mediate again, "It's like yelling, but quieter!"

"I've got a better solution," Squib says, and he looks _really_ angry but at least he's acknowledged her presence, "I'm out of here," okay, not really the result she was hoping for…

"Yeah, great, go hide in your room," Seb mocks him. Sometimes she thinks these two are worse than chicks.

"That's not what I meant. I mean I'm outta _here_, as in out of Cascadia, as in _I quit_." He storms out of the Open, and Cody turns to Sebastien, looking worried.

A few minutes later, the two are sitting face to face.

"I knew something was wrong," Seb informs her, "but typical Squib, doesn't say a word."

"But I thought you were his friend," she knows Squib has this whole trust issue kind of thing going on, but she assumed at least Sebastien would be allowed in.

"It's a guy thing, okay?" He shrugs. "So, what do we do?" A part of her knows he can't be serious. It's Squib- he's broody, temperamental, and has more mood swings than a sixteen-year-old girl going through PMS- in a matter of hours this will all blow over. But another, bigger part of her is worried that he just may be serious this time.

"Guess what!" Adena enters the Open all excited about something, but Cody's just not in the mood.

"Not now, Adena," she leaves.

* * *

She finds him at the backcourt, hitting balls into the net, "Well, if it isn't Mr. Congeniality," she's cooled down by now, but she can tell he hasn't. Hopefully her newfound information will make him feel better. He says nothing and hits about five balls dangerously close to her head. She wonders if it was on purpose; they'll talk about that later. For now she just wants to get him back to normal because, as much as she hates to admit it, she kind of misses the old Squib. Sure, he may have been annoying at times, very annoying, but he's a lot more fun to talk to.

"New technique?"

"Something like that," he obviously doesn't find her amusing.

"I could be wrong, but wouldn't that be considered cheating?" She's trying everything she can to lighten the mood because, truthfully, this new Squib is kind of freaking her out.

"The rules don't matter anymore, I'm quitting tennis," she can't help but roll her eyes. She's realized by now that there is nothing to be worried about, because this is simply Squib being Squib. All she has to do is keep her cool, and he'll be good as new. "Your dad suggested it," is he trying to justify himself to her?

"Oh, please," she can't believe he fell for it. Actually, she kinda can, "He was testing you."

"Then I guess I failed," _Gee, what a downer!_

When he starts using his tennis racquet as a golf club, she decides it's time to end the insanity, "For what it's worth, The Wall's pretty relieved."

"Relieved?" He blows it off, but she can tell he's intrigued, "Why?"

"I did some research; he sucks against a fast serve. You've clocked in at a hundred miles an hour," she can't tell if he looks surprised because of her info on The Wall, or because she actually knows a tennis stat.

"Around there," he says, "How'd you find out about the wall?"

"I'm a faculty brat, remember?" She can't keep the small hint of pride out of her voice, "I have access to all the profiles." She knows that normally Squib would be impressed with her sleuth work, but then she remembers that this isn't normal Squib.

"Sucks at good speed, huh?" She thinks maybe she's got him hooked.

"Yeah, he blotched a game against Tim Mooney last year because he couldn't break his serve."

"I'm no Tim Mooney," he says.

"Give me a break. You're serve is faster and you have way better footwork," she realizes how very odd those words sound coming out of her mouth. "You'll blast The Wall off the court."

"In another life, maybe," what the hell is _wrong_ with this kid!

"Squib, is there anything you wanna talk about? Because I-," she knows it's not the best approach before she even says it, but now she's getting desperate.

"Cody," he cuts her off angrily, making his way toward her. She knows it's supposed to intimidate her, but it doesn't. "You're probably the nicest person I know," she knows she shouldn't be flattered, given his angry tone, but she can't help it! He's still doing the whole towering over her thing (not very hard, with her height), but she's waiting for him to realize it has no effect on her.

He doesn't speak for a few moments, so she steps in, "…And?"

"…And I want you to get lost."

Ouch.

His intimidation tactics may not work on her, but that?

That hurt.

* * *

She doesn't even know why she's trying anymore. He was a total jerk to her, and obviously just wants to be left alone. But there's just something that makes her want to help him. She finds him on the beach- they seems to meets here a lot. It's night by now and she's slipped on a sweater but he's still in his T-shirt. It makes her wonder how long he's been out here, and if he's cold.

"It's past ten, you'll get busted," in true Cody and Squib fashion, she ignores the real issue for as long as she can.

"They can't suspend me if I quit," she knows by now that he's really not quitting, but just the fact that there's a part of him that wants to so badly makes her sad. She sighs and crouches down near him. She knows he'll either accept what she says next or tell her to get lost again. She hopes it's the first, because she doesn't know if she'll be able to handle getting shot down by him once more.

"This isn't about Sebastien, Francois, or Cascadia, is it?" He turns to look at her, but his gaze is open and slightly curious, not angry as it has been of late, so she continues, "It isn't really even about The Wall."

He looks away again, shaking his head, "Look, it's late, I'm tired…" but he doesn't leave, so she thinks that maybe a part of him wants her there. She simply continues staring at him, and she wonders why she feels what she does. He's not open or trusting, not even a little bit. And most of the time he's a real jerk. But he has, on (rare) occasion been almost sweet to her. He's not pouting anymore, just sitting, and Cody thinks that under this moonlight he looks kind of beautiful.

"What?" He catches her staring, but she won't look away now.

"It's about your brother, Squib," now he gets up to leave, but she knew he would when she brought up Ryan.

"Enough already! Can't anyone just have a private life around here?" He turns to walk away but she knows she can't let him leave.

"I checked Ryan's record," she calls to his retreating back, and he comes to a dead stop. "His last match was against The Wall."

He finally turns to face her, and now his voice is defensive, "So?"

"The one before he died," a part of her wants to stop, because she knows this must be paining him, but she also knows that she can't. He has to face this.

"That's right!" He starts toward her again, but this time it's not meant to be angry and intimidating. It's raw, and hurt, and all those emotions she's rarely ever seen on him before. "And Ryan lost! What about it?"

And she feels a strange almost-love for the boy before her, because she knows he's going through _so_ much and he's got no one to talk to. So she'll do the talking.

"Only that none of us can imagine how hard it must be for you to play him," they stare at each other for a long moment, "or not to," she finishes. He looks down at the ground quickly and walks away. She doesn't know if she got through, but a part of her thinks she may have.

* * *

When she saw Squib walk onto that court, she was so relieved she almost fainted. He's been dominating all game, and every time he hits that ball she feels an odd surge of pride. She doesn't think that anyone in these stands, not even Sebastien, knows just how hard this is for him right now.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer says, "match point for Mr. Furlong versus Max 'The Wall' Giroux." Cody doesn't realize until much later that she was _actually_ forgetting to breathe during those few seconds that dragged on. She knows he thinks that no one's noticed, by about halfway through she faintly made out the name Ryan written in white on his racquet. She doesn't know if it really was Ryan's or if he wrote it there himself, but it makes that strange almost-love swell again.

He lifts up his racquet, staring down his opponent, and in one quick second, it's over.

He did it.

And Cody doesn't think she has ever been more happy in her entire life.

"Okay, okay," Squib cries as his fellow students carry him into the lake, "I'm not going anywhere! I'll stay here with you losers! Just put me down!"

"See if you guys can skip him like a stone," Cody calls. She hopes he'll get it. His cries of protest are to no avail, and his final scream of "NO!" can be heard just before he hits the water. Cody has to laugh at the sight of the top ranked tennis players in the country have a splash fight.

"You'll pay for this!" He shouts as she snaps a few pictures, pointing directly at her.

"Yeah, right!" She calls back. As she takes more photos, she smiles.

He's back.

**I wondered that day what Squib really felt. He admired his brother so much that…that maybe the only worse than losing to The Wall was… beating him**

_I included Cody's final words of the episode, because I think they just sum up the entire Squib-Ryan dynamic perfectly. Also, there are one or two lines in here that aren't exact, but I just couldn't make out what they were saying!_

_Two things:_

_I am SO sorry this is so long! But the episode just had SO much C/S! I apologize to those who found it boring!_

_I know, I got real sappy during that last beach scene, but I couldn't help it! That's got to be one of my favorite C/S scenes of all time, because they rarely get the chance to actually talk about issues. I think the next time they talked like that wasn't until ep24. The episode in general is just so heavy, and I love it, because every couple needs a chance to talk like that._


	10. Very Superstitious

**No, I never forgot about this story. I just could _not_ figure out how to write this chapter! But as I was taking caps of season one today, I learned something: nothing, and I mean _nothing_, will make you feel warm and gushy and sappy like vintage C/S eps.**

**Dedicated to anyone who actually reviews this.**

_Very Superstitious:_

"You will do as I tell you, for _I_ am Master Bates: All knowing ruler of man and proud owner of the world's most powerful…_eyebrows_!" He finishes his Bates impression with a flare, and basks proudly in the girls' giggles. Well, Cody's, to be more precise.

"That is _so_ good!" Adena quips.

"I wonder if he has those eyebrows _registered_?" Cody manages to get out between giggles. She really _is_ too cute.

"I _am_ Cascadia, Mr. Furlong!" Adena shouts out her 'work in progress', and Cody's laughter gets even louder.

"Afternoon, all." Ah, yes. Nothing spoils an afternoon of Bates mockage like another faculty member. The Doc's cool, but a staff member no less.

"Dr. Myers," Squib nods respectfully.

"Hey, dad!" Cody's the only one left sound light and cheerful.

"Something tells me this is a 'parent free' zone…" _Ding, ding, ding! Two points!_

"That's why they pay him the big bucks," Cody smiles. And normally, it would be cute, as usual. But he just can't bring himself to laugh and joke normally with the school shrink standing right there.

"So," Cody speaks again after her father leaves, turning to Adena, "let's see your President Bates." So naïve. So, so naïve. "What's up?" She asks after a few moments of silence.

"Look, Cody, don't take this the wrong way," Squib internally cringes at Adena's words, knowing that she most likely _will_. "You're buddies with our shrink!" She eventually spits out. Harsh.

Squib opts to stay silent for most of Adena's mini-lecture, but he still can't help feeling bad when he sees Cody try to hide her hurt expression.

* * *

What the _hell_ is going on here?

Someone's stolen their lucky charms. And when Squib finds out who, he's going to kick some serious butt. He looks like a fool and has been chewed out by Gunns, but to make matters _worse_, she's laughing at him.

Stupid faculty brat. She's probably sitting up there, silently mocking the silly tennis players and their silly superstitions. A thought strikes him.

Does she know about his lucky boxers?

Does he _want_ her to know about his lucky boxers?

Judging from her laughter, he would guess 'yes' and 'no, no, no'.

And while he's on the subject of Cody (more often than not, these days), just _what_ has been up with her and the Doc? They seem…not close. More distant father and daughter and less…pals.

And, despite her current fit of giggles, she's been looking pretty down lately. He really, _really_ hopes it's not something he caused.

* * *

She's so evil.

The good kind of evil.

The 'I didn't know girls could _be_ this cool' evil.

_She_ stole their lucky charms!

Well, technically, Meghan stole them to teach Squib, Adena, and Seb a lesson, and then _Cody_ stole them to teach _Meghan_ a lesson.

He saw her having a talk with her dad a little while ago before she came to hang out with them. Looks like things are back to normal. Meaning Squib can breathe easy. And that even _Cody_ learned a lesson.

Point is, they all learned a lesson, and Cody's really cool.

**Yes, a lot of the details concerning who stole what and who was in on what scam were left out. Because I only have two clips of ep 10, neither of which deal with the ultimate result. So I really have no clue what went on…So confusing.**


End file.
